Your CV should be typed rather than handwritten, and printed on good quality paper. It should also be clearly laid out. Try to maintain a good balance between 'space' and amount of information. So use plenty of white space, don't crowd the page with text, and make your headings bold and/or underline them so that your document is easy to navigate.

When writing your CV, keep it plain and simple. Avoid gobbleygook, and use jargon terms only if they are universally understood. Consider using 'bullets' to highlight specific responsibilities and/or achievements. And if you find it difficult to summarise a complex issue in a single phrase, try setting out the elements as bullet points.

Broadly speaking, your CV should include the following:

  • personal details (name, address, email address, phone numbers)
  • education details (colleges attended with dates and qualifications)
  • work experience (job titles, dates, employers, responsibilities and achievements)
  • skills (languages, particular vocational skills etc)
  • interests (hobbies, extra curricular activities)
  • referees (names and addresses for both personal and work-related references)

You may also want to put in a personal statement, perhaps highlighting your Personal Profile, Objectives or focusing on the kind of role you really want. If so, keep it succinct and relevant.All of this should cover no more than 2-3 A4 sides, if possible. If not, consider abbreviating your work experience of more than 5 years ago. You could change the font or point-size. But try not to mix styles too much in your document. Finally, always make sure that your CV is spell-checked - and get someone else to read it and encourage them to critique it for you.

A curriculum vitae (CV) or resume is quite simply a short summary of your personal attributes, qualifications, work experience and interests. It enables others to gain a quick understanding of who you are. A CV is often requested as part of the job application process and may well be the determining factor in whether you are invited for a face-to-face interview. So, there are some basic guidelines on how to put the document together to make the best impact.